How to Delete Files From Google Drive on iPhone

What do you do with unnecessary Google Drive files? Obviously, you delete them. Google Provides you with 15 GB worth of free storage space. 

So, in order to keep using the free storage space, you’d have to delete files that are no longer needed. 

In this detailed guide, we’ll show you how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

However, before you go any further, there are a few things you should be aware of. 

To begin with, when you delete a file from Google Drive, it is not necessarily deleted immediately. 

Those files are placed in trash, where they will remain for 30 days before being permanently deleted. 

You can also recover or permanently delete the file from trash before the 30-day period expires.

How to Install Google Drive on an iPhone

The preceding steps assume that you have already installed the Google Drive app on your device. 

If not, follow the instructions below to obtain it.

• Launch the App Store.
• Select the Search tab.
• Enter “google drive” into the search field, then select the first result.
• Tap the Get button to the right of the Drive app.
• Wait for it to install before pressing the Open button.
• Enter your Google email address as well as your password.

If you do not want to or are unable to download the Google Drive app, you can delete files on your iPhone using the Safari browser.

How to Delete Files From Google Drive on iPhone

There are multiple ways to delete your files from Google Drive but first, let us look at how to delete files from Google Drive via the app.

Method 1: How to Delete files via the Google Drive app.

You can delete files stored on Google Drive directly from the app on iOS. 

Because the mechanism is the same, you can use the steps below to delete folders as well. 

To begin, launch the Google Drive app on your iPhone and navigate to the file or folder you wish to delete. 

When you’ve found it, tap the 3-dots icon on the right-hand side of the file you want to delete.

Scroll down and select Remove from the menu that appears.

Select Move to Bin from the prompt.

Method 2: How to Delete an Open File in the Google Drive App

You can also delete files that have been opened in Google Drive. 

When they’re open, tap the 3-dots button in the top right corner.

Select Remove from the menu.

Now, in the prompt that appears, tap on Move to Bin.

Method 3: How to Delete Multiple Files in the Google Drive

Tap and hold any of the files you wish to remove until they are highlighted in order to remove multiple files and folders from Google Drive.

Tap the three dots icon in the top right corner after choosing additional files to remove.

Choose Remove from the overflow menu.

Pick Move to Bin from the following prompt.

The “File moved to bin” banner ought to appear at the bottom after you remove a file.

How to Delete Files Forever From Google Drive

As we’ve stated above, deleting a file from Google Drive doesn’t necessarily permanently delete it. You must first move it to your Google Drive Bin in order to delete it permanently. You can permanently remove these files after placing them in the trash.

Method 1: How to Permanently Remove Files From the Trash Bin

Tap the Hamburger menu icon in the top left corner of the Google Drive app once it is open.

Select Bin from the sidebar that appears.

Tap on the 3-dot icon on the right-hand side to only delete the file you previously deleted.

To permanently delete the file from Google Drive, select Delete forever.

Select Delete permanently from the following prompt.

Method 2: How to Permanently Delete All Open Files

Opening a file from the Bin folder and tapping on the three dots icon in the top right corner will also permanently delete it.

Choose Delete permanently from the overflow menu.

To confirm the deletion, tap on Delete forever inside the prompt once more.

Method 3: How to Permanently Delete Several Files on Google Drive

Selecting multiple files and deleting them all at once from the Bin is not possible. 

However, you can remove all of the files from Google Drive’s Bin folder by selecting the 3-dot icon in the screen’s upper right corner.

Select Empty bin next.

Select Delete permanently from the following prompt.

You will never be able to recover any of the files inside the bin folder because they will all be permanently deleted.

How to Recover Files That You’ve Deleted on Google Drive

Google allows you to recover files deleted from Google Drive as long as you haven’t exceeded the 30-day window. 

If you deleted a file on Google Drive and it has been more than 30 days, you will be unable to recover it on your own. 

You can only recover files that you recently deleted and threw away within 30 days of their deletion.

Method 1: How to Retrieve a File From Google Drive’s Bin

To recover files from Google Drive’s bin, launch the app and select the Hamburger menu icon in the upper left corner.

Select Bin from the sidebar that appears.

Now tap on the 3-dots icon on the right-hand side of the file you want to recover to restore it from this folder.

Select Restore from the overflow menu.

The selected file will be restored, and the “file name> restored” banner should appear at the bottom. The file will be visible in the previous folder it was in on Google Drive, and you can access it from there.

Method 2: How to Retrieve a Previously Opened File From the Google Drive Bin

You can also recover a file from the Bin by opening it in the Bin folder and then tapping the Restore button (represented by a clock) in the top right corner.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Happens When I Delete a File From Google Drive?

When you delete a file from Google Drive, Google does not permanently delete the file. 

The removed file is sent to the trash can and stored there for 30 days before being automatically deleted. 

Google provides you with this 30-day window to help you recover these files if you need them quickly and to avoid making costly mistakes.

You can either leave the removed files in the bin and wait for Google to delete them or permanently delete them before the 30-day period expires. 

You will be unable to recover these files once they have been permanently deleted.

You will be unable to recover these files once they have been permanently deleted. In rare cases, Google may be able to assist you in recovering files that you have permanently deleted. 

You might need to have a Google One account in order to contact Google Support executives via phone, text, or email and request that they recover the file you require.

If you shared the file that you deleted, others can still view it as long as it isn’t permanently deleted.

If the file you deleted was not yours, removing it from your Google Drive account will not prevent others from accessing it.

How to Delete Files From Google Drive on an iPad

You can remove files from Google Drive by following the steps outlined below.

You will also learn how to clear your trash folder because files sent to the trash are stored there for 30 days.

• Launch the Google Drive app on your iPad.
• Choose the three-dot menu next to the file you want to delete.
• To delete the file, click “Remove.”
• To delete multiple items, tap and hold the first file and then tap on the remaining items.
• Select “Move to trash” from the trash icon at the top of the page.

Your deleted files have now been placed in the trash folder. You must remove them from the trash folder to permanently delete them from the platform.

To see all of your deleted files, navigate to “Trash.”

Select “Delete Forever” from the three-dot menu next to the file.

If you want to remove all of the documents from the trash folder at once, do the following:

Navigate to the upper right corner of Google Drive.

Select the “Trash” icon.

Tap “Empty Trash” in the upper right corner.

Google Drive will now permanently delete all of your content.

Click the three-dot menu in the top left corner of Google Drive.

How to Delete Files From Google Drive on a Mac

Are you thinking of transferring files on your Mac to your Google Drive, but there is not enough space? 

This is what you should do if you are using a Mac device to delete files from Google Drive.

• Log in to your account on the Google Drive website.
• Select the folder you want to delete.
• If you want to remove more than one folder, hold down the Command key while making your selection.
• Navigate to and click on the trash icon in the upper right corner.
• The files will be moved to the trash folder.

You can empty the folder to permanently remove them from the trash section.

Navigate to the three-dot menu on the Google Drive website.

Select “Trash,” then “Trash my drive.”

Click “Empty Trash” in the upper right corner to permanently delete everything in the folder.

You have successfully deleted files from Google Drive.

Conclusion

You can store files online with Google Drive and access them from any computer, smartphone, or tablet from anywhere in the world.

Whether you are on your PC or mobile device, you can use Google Drive to upload, edit, and share files online.

You can also manage your files more effectively if you know how to maintain storage space in Drive.

We hope this article on how to delete files from Google Drive on iPhone was helpful. 

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